1. The way to see
by faith is to
shut the eye
of reason.
Benjamin Franklin
Faith is the art of
holding on to
things your reason
has once accepted
in spite of your
changing moods.
C.S. Lewis

2. When faith
becomes
blind it dies.
Sometimes you
just have to believe.
To be certain,
without reason. To
have faith in the
unseen.
Mahatma Gandhi
Liz Betrey

3. Who is Liz Betrey? She’s just a lady
who posted her thought about faith on
the internet. She is no one famous.
But here thought on faith is pretty
representative of what most people
say when they talk about faith. How
we think about faith is so very critical.
Consider the following:

4. Truly understood and properly
practiced, faith is one of the grand and
glorious powers of eternity. It is a
force powerful beyond our
comprehension. Our faith is the
foundation upon which all our
spiritual lives rest. It should be the
most important resource of our lives.
Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin, Nov. 2002 Ensign, p. 84

5. Poorly defined, faith not only produces
little conviction but also is difficult to
nurture and increase.
Elder Neal A. Maxwell
The Neal A. Maxwell Quote Book, p. 110

6. There are two words in the scriptures
which are KEY words in truly
understanding and properly
practicing faith so that it can be
nurtured and increased:

7. “not seen”

8. Now faith is the (assurance JST) of things hoped for, the evidence
of things not seen.
. . .things not seen in any way.
. . .things not seen with physical eyes.
. . .things not seen fully or completely.
. . .things seen spiritually or seen with understanding.
. . .things seen spiritually and physically but only in part.

9. And now as I said concerning faith – faith is not to have a perfect
knowledge of things; therefore if ye have faith ye hope for things
which are not seen, which are true.
. . . ye hope for things which are not seen in any way, which are true.
. . .ye hope for things which are seen spiritually, which are true.
. . .ye hope for things which are seen in part, which are true.
. . .ye hope for things which are not seen physically, which are true.
. . .ye hope for things which are not seen fully or completely, which are true

10. I would show unto the world that faith is things which are hoped for
and not seen; wherefore, dispute not because ye see not . . .
. . .faith is things which are hoped for and not seen in any
way, wherefore, dispute not because ye see not any thing at all . . .
. . .faith is things which are hoped for and seen spiritually, wherefore,
dispute not because ye see not with your physical eyes. . .
. . .faith is things which are hoped for and seen in
part, wherefore, dispute not because ye see not everything . . .

11. It’s interesting! We talk one way about
faith, but we really THINK differently
about it. Consider the following
statements. Which of the two REALLY
fits how you think about faith:

12. •I have faith in the unknown and the unseen.
•I have faith in what I see and understand about Jesus.
I can’t see what’s ahead so I walk by faith not by sight.
There is much I can’t see but, the part I can see is my
faith. What I see gives me the courage to move ahead.
Faith requires me to walk in the dark.
Faith is following the light. My feet may be in the
dark but with faith my mind is never in the dark.
The more I am willing to walk in the dark the more
my faith will grow.
The more clearly I see Christ the more my faith grows.

13. And I was led by the
Spirit, not knowing
beforehand the things which I
should do.
I Nephi 4:6

14. And I was led by the Spirit, not
knowing beforehand the things
which I should do.
I Nephi 4:6
Which words in this verse indicate Nephi’s faith? “Not knowing
beforehand, or “And I was led by the Spirit” ?

15. And after many days an angel of
the Lord appeared unto Adam,
saying: Why dost thou offer
sacrifices unto the Lord? And
Adam said unto him: I know not,
save the Lord commanded me.
Moses 5:6

16. And after many days an angel of
the Lord appeared unto Adam,
saying: Why dost thou offer
sacrifices unto the Lord? And
Adam said unto him: I know not,
save the Lord commanded me.
Moses 5:6
Again, which words give us an understanding of Adam’s
faith? “I know not” or “save the Lord commanded me” ?

17. Consider this example from the life of
Elder Boyd K. Packer when he first
became an Apostle:

18. “We once had a major decision
to make. When our prayers left
us uncertain, I went to see
Elder Harold B. Lee. He
counseled us to proceed.
Sensing that I was still very
unsettled, He said,

19. Can you see the problem?
Maybe this will be helpful:

20. “We once had a major decision to
make (buying a home). When our
prayers left us uncertain, I went to
see Elder Harold B. Lee. He
counseled us to proceed (buy it).
Sensing that I was still very
unsettled, He said,

21. President Lee (Prophet, seer, and
revelator) chastens Elder Packer a
little.

22. The problem with you is you
want to see the end from the
beginning. Then he quoted
this verse from the Book of
Mormon, “Dispute not because
you see not, for ye receive no
witness until after the trial of
your faith.” President Boyd K. Packer, May 2005 Ensign, p. 8

23. “We once had a major decision to
make (buying a home). When our
prayers left us uncertain, I went to
see Elder Harold B. Lee. He
counseled us to proceed (buy it).
Sensing that I was still very
unsettled.
Did Elder Packer have enough light to proceed? A prophet, seer, and revelator told him
to proceed! He KNEW President Lee (an apostle at the time) was inspired. But he was
afraid. He didn’t act on the part that he knew.

24. A trial or exercise of faith is very
simple in process but challenging in
application. The process is to
simply focus on what you know to
be true. The hard part is to
maintain that focus no matter what
distractions are thrown at you.

25. And he had hoped to shake me
from the faith, notwithstanding the
many revelations and the many
things which I had seen concerning
these things; for I truly had seen
angels, and they had ministered
unto me. And also, I had heard the
voice of the Lord speaking unto me
in very word, from time to time;
wherefore, I could not be shaken.
Jacob 7:5

26. O then, if I have seen so great
things, if the Lord in his
condescension unto the children of
men hath visited men is so much
mercy, why should my heart weep
and my soul linger in the valley of
sorrow, and my flesh waste away,
and my strength slacken, because
of mine afflictions?
2 Nephi 4:26

27. And your minds in times past
have been darkened because of
unbelief, and because you have
treated lightly the things you have
received – Which vanity and
unbelief have brought the whole
church under condemnation.
D&C 84:54-55

28. We know not what lies ahead of us. We
know not what the coming days will
bring. We live in a world of uncertainty.
We do not know. But one thing we do
know. Like the polar star in the heavens
there stands the Redeemer of the
world, the Son of God, certain and sure
as the anchor of our immortal lives. He
is the rock of our salvation, our
strength, our comfort, the very focus of
our faith.
Pres. Gordon B. Hinckley, May 2002 Ensign, p. 90

29. “And so it is with our eternal journey. We
take one step at a time. In doing so we
reach toward the unknown, but faith
lights the way. If we cultivate that faith,
we shall never walk in darkness.”
President Gordon B. Hinckley, May 2002 Ensign, pages 73, 74